


Let It Snow

by white_carnations



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: First Kiss, Fluff, Love Confessions, M/M, Not Beta Read, Post-Pacifist Best Ending (Detroit: Become Human)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-24
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-09-26 14:41:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17143652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/white_carnations/pseuds/white_carnations
Summary: Gavin had known it was going to snow, there’d been warnings everywhere for the past week. What he didn't know was that it was going to cause some unexpected realizations in relation to a very specific android.





	Let It Snow

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kiphla](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=kiphla).



> you said you liked accidental confessions so i tried my best, hope you enjoy!
> 
> also i'm sorry if gavin is kinda ooc but shhh

It was early November when they had the first snow of the season.

Gavin had known it was going to snow, there’d been warnings everywhere for the past week. He’s lived in Detroit his whole life, it was something he was used to. He saw no wonder in it anymore; it unearthed no childish excitement from somewhere deep within him when he woke up and saw everything covered in a veil of white.

He remembers enjoying the snow as a kid. It’s a good memory in amongst the mess that was his childhood - one time of the year Eli was the most willing to actually play with him.

The mind of his half-brother was a mystery to him as a child, and if he’s honest, he still doesn’t get it. Why would any child deprive themselves of a childhood? His parents may have been extremely proud but Elijah never cared much for their praise - or anyone else’s for that matter. No, Eli did nothing unless it was for his benefit.

But Elijah loved the snow. A bitter, teenage Gavin had thought it was because it shared his ice cold nature, but he’d never actually asked, choosing to just appreciate the fact they were spending time together. It was odd to see his half-brother outside, smiling and enjoying himself when he was used to seeing him holed up inside all day, everyday studying from various textbooks.

They’d make snowmen and snow angels and have snowball fights and Gavin doesn’t think there’s another time he’s seen Eli smile and laugh so genuinely in his entire life. Elijah’s snowmen would always be perfect and precise,, while Gavin would struggle to get his to stay up. He remembers Eli helping him with a caring smile and warmth in his eyes Gavin didn’t see for the rest of the year.

Now he’s a grown man and there’s nothing fun about snow. It blocks roads, causes delays and it may look nice, white and soft but that shit starts fucking melting the second you touch it so as far as he’s concerned it’s just pretty lookin’ rain.

Most of all, it makes his job even harder and anyone that’s known him for a considerable amount of time knows that’s his priority. He’s never been afraid of stepping on other people’s toes to help advance his career at the DPD. Unfortunately, the weather is not something he can control so every year he just has to deal with it.

This year there’s a slight change - he’s got Nines by his side. Having an android as a partner is still something he’s trying to come to proper terms with. To be fair, he isn’t opposed to it anymore, in fact he considers the android a close friend - but prejudices don’t just disappear overnight and Nines has only been at the DPD since late April. It took him until June to talk to him like an actual person and until September to finally, begrudgingly accept the two had become friends.

Now they’re almost inseparable, two assholes against the world - at least that’s how he likes to think about it. He’s still not sure when Nines officially moved in with him but at some point he’d just stopped leaving, instead deciding to enter stasis every night on the worn down sofa in his living room. He doesn’t see why Nines would choose his small, shitty apartment over his own clean, modern one but he wasn’t about to question his choice. After all, they had free will now, if it’s what he wanted Gavin wasn’t gonna stop him.

They never really talked about it, just accepted it as something that happened. It made sense, Nines was his only friend (excluding Tina) and although he refused to admit it, his apartment got lonely from time to time, even with the addition of his asshole cat who now preferred Nines over him -  _ the traitor.  _ Nines could get naggy now and then but Gavin found it hard to get angry like he used to knowing it was only because he cared. It seemed this was one element of his life he couldn’t find anything to complain about.

_ God, he’s gotten soft. _

The android helped him appreciate the small things again. Due to the fact he was less than a year old he was like a child - albeit a very tall, muscular and intimidating child - noticing things Gavin hadn’t paid attention to in years and pointing them out in his own stoic way. Gavin had noticed Connor doing a very similar thing but with a lot more enthusiasm, Hank seemed amused by the androids child-like nature but Gavin found it down right fucking annoying. Nines’ lack of expression when it came to positive emotions was one thing on the list of things he liked about the android and his acknowledgement of small details in their day to day lives without unnecessary excitement seemed to have shifted his usual cynical outlook on the world.

He notices how the movement of the sun causes shadows to shift gradually throughout the day and how the texture of the mechanical keys felt under his fingers as he typed out his reports. He notices the noises around him first thing in the morning, picking out the heavy breathing of his cat on the end of his bed which turns into purring when she realizes he’s awake; the occasional distant rumble of a car engine from the roads outside his apartment; and the sound of sizzling that comes from the kitchen when Nines cooks him breakfast. Most of all he notices the way Nines smiles at him, these days it’s more caring than sarcastic and he swears he will occasionally see a twinkle in that android's eyes. Twinkle or not, he never fails to smile back even if it is just the smallest upturn of his lips when his caffeine and nicotine riddled brain isn’t functioning well enough to deal with the rest of the world.

Because of all this he notices the first few snowflakes fall, landing on the bonnet of his car but instantly melting and evaporating because of the heat of the engine. They’re on their way home from the precinct and Gavin’s driving despite Nines constant interjections. It’s his car, he chose to not buy something that drives itself so he will goddamn drive it. Nines points out the snow before he can even formulate a sentence because  _ of course he does.  _ Gavin, as usual is a dumbass.

“What, you never seen snow before robocop?” He asks, doing his best to concentrate on the road instead of looking over to his partner.

“Obviously not Gavin, I’ve only been awake since April.” He replies bluntly, but there’s no bite in his voice, he’s used to Gavin’s stupid questions from his inability to think before he speaks.

The snow is light, too light to settle. Gavin doesn’t get his hopes up for it leaving anytime soon though, it’s predicted to pick up overnight so he’s already mentally preparing himself to wake up to everything covered in the stuff. It’s times like this he’s most thankful for his four-wheel drive as the people with their shitty automated cars won’t be able to get anywhere unless they wanna wade through the snow on foot.

When they get back to the apartment complex, Gavin turns to talk to Nines, opening his mouth to speak but nothing comes out. The expression on the android’s face is one of pure wonder as his eyes track individual snowflakes falling to the ground, so light they’re easily carried away by the slight breeze. Gavin doesn’t think he’s ever seen his partner look so innocent. In fact, he’s pretty sure he’s mirroring his expression because of how shocked he is. Stoic, serious Nines looks like a child who’s just entered Disneyland for the first time and it takes his best efforts no to laugh.

It’s a strange sight and Gavin tells himself that’s the only reason he can’t look away. Not because he’s stuck admiring the androids perfect skin, which is littered with moles that are as pretty are constellations in the night sky, a rare sight in Detroit due to the amount of pollution. The way that somehow his artificial eyes seem to be filled with awe fascinates him. He may be in denial about it but he had to give credit to whoever designed him, the guy was good fucking eye candy.

Nines blinks rapidly, his expression returning to normal. He’s still blinking when he turns to Gavin and he can’t help but admire the dark lashes that outline his eyes, framing his eyes, easily mistaken for blue from afar due to their cool tone. It’s likely he’s imagining it, but up close they have a certain element of warmth to them.

All of this happens too quickly for Gavin’s human brain to handle and he’s left with no time to avert his gaze. Its obvious Nines caught him staring and he can already feel his cheeks burning and he’s certain they’re dusted with a dull shade of pink.

“Are you blushing, detective?” Nines furrows his brows, his expression a mix of concern and confusion.

“No,” He replies defensively, instantly giving himself away, “It’s just real fucking cold, lay off for once.”

All he gets as a response is raised eyebrows and narrowed eyes. He knows the android can see straight through his lie, it’s one of the things he was built to do and Gavin’s not exactly good at being subtle either. His excuse was more than believable but his delivery was poor at best.

The two of them stand in silence as the snow falls around them for a good couple minutes before Nines breaks the silence, clearly noticing Gavin’s slight shiver.

“For once you are actually right about something,” Gavin rolls his eyes but otherwise ignores the backhanded insult. “It is very cold and you are not dressed appropriately for the current weather conditions, you should go inside.”

He’s right, Gavin hadn’t bothered to put any more layers on than usual, sporting his usual jeans, v-neck and leather jacket combo.

“What about you, won’t your circuits freeze up or something?”

Nines gives him a pointed look. “I wouldn’t be very state-of-the-art if I stopped working when it gets a little cold, Gavin.”

“Whatever tin can, I just don’t wanna come out here later and find your frozen is all.”

“I appreciate your concern.”

“Have fun watching the snow, you weirdo.” And with that he leaves Nines to it, giving him a weak wave as a form of goodbye, before turning around to call back. “Don’t take too long, you promised you’d cook tonight.”

Pushing the door open to the small apartment, he’s instantly greeted by their two cats. Dipshit, a small tabby incessantly rubs her head against his ankles, while a black and white kitten stops short by his feet, letting out a loud meow. The kitten is a new addition to their small household, he’d found the poor thing abandoned in an alley. When he’d brought her home and cleaned her up, it surprised him to find out she was mostly white instead of pure black. Gavin wasn’t sure about keeping her at the time but she’d immediately taken a liking to Nines and he couldn’t bare to separate the two. They’d named her Bob for no real reason other than that Gavin thought it was funny, registered her at the vet, and now she was a permanent member of their family.

It was odd to think of their small household as a family but he guesses that was what it was. They were far from the stereotype but it was a million times better than what his real family was like.

He removes his shoes and shrugs off his jacket before collapsing onto the sofa, deciding he’d take the opportunity to have a nap while Nines attempts to catalog every single type of snowflake. Gavin chuckles to himself at the thought. The android is obsessed with collecting data and even though he’ll know every snowflake is unique, he’ll still want to analyse and categorize as many as he can.

Closing his eyes and letting himself drift off, he listens to the background noise of the outside world and thinks about how much happier he is with Nines in his life. Maybe androids weren’t so bad. 

-

When Gavin wakes up the next morning his room seems brighter, he knows before he gets up that it’s because of the snow. Hauling himself out of bed, he stretches before walking over to his window and drawing the curtains. Sure enough, there’s a thick blanket covering every possible surface, the early morning light reflecting of the pure white and brightening everything in the vicinity. Snowflakes are still drifting to the ground but the snowfall is significantly heavier than the day before.

He lets out a heavy sigh, he’s seen it all before, there’s no point in gawking at it. Pulling on an old hoodie, he grabs a cigarette off his bedside table and makes his way to the balcony that protrudes from the living room. Before he’d met Nines, he was a borderline chain-smoker and the android wouldn’t stop bugging him about quitting. Eventually the two had come up with a compromise - he was allowed one cigarette each morning. Gavin was reluctant at first but he’d quickly gotten used to the routine. 

He’d also tried to make him limit his caffeine intake but Gavin was having none of it. Taking away the majority of his nicotine was one thing but at this point coffee was his lifeline, he couldn’t do his job without it let alone act like a functioning member of society.

He enters the living room, it’s not something he expects, but he’s not surprised to find Nines stood on the balcony, his expression even more awful than the day before, eyes wide and shimmering as his gaze darts rapidly between snowflakes.

He says nothing as he approaches, instead standing next to Nines. Just like the previous evening he’s looking at Nines instead of the snow and he couldn’t look away if his life depended on it. Mentally tracing the outline of all his facial features, he gets lost in the realism of his synthetic skin. He may not be able to save all the data and put it in its own nice neat folder like he knows Nines can but he can damn well try his best to memorize it. 

Gavin’s knows him well enough to know there’s a lot more to him than first impressions indicate. It still astounds him how caring an android that was built specifically for intimidation can be. He’s funny too, at least Gavin thinks he is. All wit and sarcasm, he’s always got a counter to Gavin’s unrelenting insults. They may have had a rocky start but if he really thinks about it they’re pretty perfect for each other. He can easily see himself spending his life with the plastic prick.

_ Oh fuck. _

Suddenly, everything clicks and he doesn’t need his dumb nicotine anymore. He can’t stop his eyes from travelling to the androids lips and he becomes mesmerized by the shape of them and how soft they look. He wonders how real artificial lips can feel and the urge to kiss him is overwhelming.

So when Nines turns to him he does.

It only lasts a split second before he pulls away, shocked by his own actions. Nines seems to be on a similar wavelength, eyes wide in shock and LED flashing red rapidly.

“I think I love you.” It’s sounds desperate, full of want he didn’t know existed until a few seconds ago and the words tumble out of his mouth without his brain properly processing them.

Nines’ whole body goes stiff as if Gavin’s words had suddenly reversed his deviancy. Panic immediately sets in, he feels his heart beat harshly in his chest as his vision blurs, but before he can think too much Nines’ lips are touching his own again.

When they separate Gavin immediately searches Nines’ face for any hint of emotion. Much to his surprise, his eyes are shining like melted platinum but the rest of his face is full of worry. Gavin feels his eyes prick with tears and he buries his face into the soft fabric of Nines’ shirt, too overwhelmed by his own sudden realisation and the onslaught of emotions that came with it to look at his him any longer. Wrapping his arms around him, he fists his hands into the fabric, trying his best to steady his breathing but failing miserably. 

He waits for rejection. For Nines’ to push him away, tell him that he’s not good enough, that he doesn’t feel the same way. No matter how irrational those thoughts are considering Nines’ own actions Gavin knows how cruel the world can be and refuses to get his hopes up. 

His worries are eradicated when he feels strong arms wrap around his shivering body. Nines places a gentle kiss on the top of his head and rubs comforting circles into his back with his thumb. 

“I love you too, you absolute idiot.” Even when he mumbles Nines sounds so sure of himself.

Gavin lets out a breath he didn’t realise he was holding, smiling into Nines chest as he feels his shoulders relax. His cigarette is long forgotten on the floor, practically invisible beneath the settling snow, which continues to fall around them. It starts settling on the two of them but Gavin couldn’t care less as he finally pulls away, with tears still rolling down his face he grins widely  at Nines who, in turn, gives him a gentle smile full of warmth.

Maybe the snow wasn’t so bad after all. 

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading, please consider commenting or leaving kudos, it means a lot!
> 
> white_carnations  
> [tumblr](https://c0ffee-gremlin.tumblr.com/)  
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/c0ffee_gremlin)  
>    
> 


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